Australian Open 2013 - the other players

I was expecting Ferrer to lose in straights but didn't expect such a below-par performance. He served really badly, moved badly and most of his shots were barely bouncing past the service line - just too easy for Novak. Perhaps all the tennis he's played last year and the beginning of this year (4 weeks in a row now: Abu Dhabi, Doha, Auckland, AO) has caught up with him, plus the 4 hour match against Almagro in the last round.

Novak though was brilliant but he wasn't really tested. Both Andy and Federer will push him much further, and it'll be interesting to see how his form holds up when he's put under pressure.

I think if Fed gets through Murray, ND is almost guaranteed the trophy. If Murray defeats Fed, ND might well still get it, but I am certain that Murray will put up much more of a fight than Ferrer managed today. The days of Murray rolling over like that are long gone.

Very disappointing. I was hoping Ferrer would take Nole to 4 or 5 sets Now I begin to wonder if anyone can overcome Federer and then beat Nole when he has 2 whole days to recover from what must have been just a workout.Murray has a real mountain to climb but fortunately that's what he seems to like.

This match means absolutely nothing to Murray. Not one jot. Matches between Murray and Djokovic these days come down almost entirely as to who plays the big points best on the day. Freshness will hardly factor if Murray is to get past Federer, short of a 4/5 hour marathon (which they've never had) or the match running into Saturday (very unlikely here). In-fact a two day rest could almost be to Djokovic's detriment.

This match means absolutely nothing to Murray. Not one jot. Matches between Murray and Djokovic these days come down almost entirely as to who plays the big points best on the day. Freshness will hardly factor if Murray is to get past Federer, short of a 4/5 hour marathon (which they've never had) or the match running into Saturday (very unlikely here). In-fact a two day rest could almost be to Djokovic's detriment.

Agreed. Don't think recovery time is an issue, to be frank, unless there's some kind of injury niggle.

I agree that today's semi doesn't have any bearing on Andy at all. Andy doesn't play Djokovic like that now, assuming he ever did. Ferrer was barely moving Djokovic at all. He was essentially letting Djokovic stand there and dictate, and of course Djokovic was going to do it.

I hate to say it, but I think most of us could have called that match before a ball had been struck. The thing that annoyed me though, apart from the fact that it wasn't a match in any sense, was that the comms talked about Ferrer not doing anything different, which the top four like, and the lower ranked players don't. I get what they were driving at, but what they seemed to miss seemed obvious to me. Against the lower ranked players, I mean most of those ranked lower than him, Ferrer believes he can win, so he's a brick wall on the court. Against the top players he might hold them off for a while, but it seems as if he simply doesn't believe that he is capable of beating any of them consistently, so straight away he goes on to the court thinking that he is going to lose. To my mind it's as simple as that.

Djokovic played well today, really well, and deserved the win, but I'm not going to worry about him until I have to. Today wasn't much more than a practice session, which is a shame for a major semi final really.

Hard to believe that these are semi-final matches. Can't blame Stephens though. After that massive win over Serena, she was likely to fold in this match.

And that gamesmanship Azarenka pulled just to regroup herself from the choking fest she was going through. lol. I hope Na Li wins the women’s Championship. And goot to see Sharapova out.

Even Ferrer was out of energy against Nole when Nole had one marathon 5 setter and another 4 setter just prior. It seems both Nadal and Nole are unaffected by the length of a match. Simon, Chardy, Ferrer were all affected by their previous matches. Mind boggling stuff. The length of a match has always been a problem for Andy and it’s not different for either Federer or Del Potro either. Of course both Federer and Delpo are aggressive players so not very used to playing very long matches, but Federer's fitness was never a quesion in his entire life.

Nole may look scary but rest assured, he's not blowing either Andy or Federer off the court come final. Still, he probably has the best chance to win his 3rd consecutive AO titles. That would be pretty impressive.

I was expecting Ferrer to lose in straights but didn't expect such a below-par performance. He served really badly, moved badly and most of his shots were barely bouncing past the service line - just too easy for Novak. Perhaps all the tennis he's played last year and the beginning of this year (4 weeks in a row now: Abu Dhabi, Doha, Auckland, AO) has caught up with him, plus the 4 hour match against Almagro in the last round.

Novak though was brilliant but he wasn't really tested. Both Andy and Federer will push him much further, and it'll be interesting to see how his form holds up when he's put under pressure.

I thought Ferrer put a lot of effort in dismissing both Nishikori and Almagro in the previous rounds. It's also true that he had a very long year just last year, when he went on to win 7 titles-- -his best year yet, he must be feeling it right now. This could also potentially mean a flat year in 2013 for him. He's almost 31 so certainly not getting any younger.

I hate to say it, but I think most of us could have called that match before a ball had been struck. The thing that annoyed me though, apart from the fact that it wasn't a match in any sense, was that the comms talked about Ferrer not doing anything different, which the top four like, and the lower ranked players don't. I get what they were driving at, but what they seemed to miss seemed obvious to me. Against the lower ranked players, I mean most of those ranked lower than him, Ferrer believes he can win, so he's a brick wall on the court. Against the top players he might hold them off for a while, but it seems as if he simply doesn't believe that he is capable of beating any of them consistently, so straight away he goes on to the court thinking that he is going to lose. To my mind it's as simple as that.

Djokovic played well today, really well, and deserved the win, but I'm not going to worry about him until I have to. Today wasn't much more than a practice session, which is a shame for a major semi final really.

I think he's just realistic that he's not as good a player as those ranked above him. It doesn't mean that he gives up before he walks on court though - his AO SF and Wimbledon QF against Andy show that he's willing to fight, not to mention his RG QF win over Andy. If there's a chance to win he'll take it - like he did in the USO 2007 against Rafa. But in pure tennis terms, his serve is weaker, his groundstrokes have less power, and Novak, Roger, Andy and Rafa move just as quickly round the court as he does. Some of these weaknesses are down to his height - I'm sure he'd love a powerful serve that would give him free points, but it's just not going to happen. Novak is an especially tough matchup for him because of how aggressively he returns his second serve - no chance to be the aggressor in those rallies as he was always starting from a defensive position.

Against those ranked below him, he's able to dictate a lot of the rallies because they're not able to defend as well as he does, nor are they able to return his serve as aggressively. If you see him play Del Potro or Berdych, he's the one making them move around the court and forcing errors from them. I think Nishikori will prove to be a real problem for him in the future if he stays injury free as he's also a very good mover and can attack off both wings.

I thought Ferrer put a lot of effort in dismissing both Nishikori and Almagro in the previous rounds. It's also true that he had a very long year just last year, when he went on to win 7 titles-- -his best year yet, he must be feeling it right now. This could also potentially mean a flat year in 2013 for him. He's almost 31 so certainly not getting any younger.

Yes he must have invested a lot of emotional energy as well as physical energy in beating Almagro. The Nishikori match scoreline looked routine but in the first set he could very easily have been a double break down but ended up playing those points very well. I've been wondering too what 2013 will bring for him - I wouldn't be surprised if he has a bit of a dip at some point. His play in Melbourne definitely didn't look at the same level as the end of last year, though he does prefer slightly quicker courts.

I just hope that if Andy does beat Federer, he does it farily quickly and not in a long 5 setter. It'll be so hard to recover in time for a well-rested Novak in the final. This tournament hasn't had many exciting matches but I hope this second SF and the final live up to their potential.

Good post Katie.The only thing I would add about Ferrer is I'm not sure what he has left in his arsenal. He seems to have used all of his abilities to the maximum, and there's no shame in that.I hope he continues to play as long as he can, and enjoy the game.

I'm not too worried about Andy's recovery time. He's as fit and as ready as he'll ever be, even with a 5 setter (which I'm not expecting.)If Novak can do it, then so can Andy. And maybe the longer down-time for Nole might work more against than for him.

You know I've been watching Nole for such a long time (since 2006) and until 2011, his fitness had always been the biggest question mark in his career. He had such a flat year in 2010 but since that point on within a couple of months, he had made amazing recovery from this apparent flaw of his. But he has gone even beyond that. How is it all possible? Practically within months? His game remains the same – only now whatever he does, he does it with conviction, but it is the same game he plays. His mental strength is untouchable right now but again, it’s based on his miracle physical improvement since end of 2010. But anyway, what do I know.